The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has suspended four Members of Parliament (MPs) for two weeks, effective immediately, following a chaotic incident during Thursday’s sitting of the Appointments Committee.
The suspended MPs include the two Chief Whips from both the Minority and Majority caucuses, Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor and Frank Annoh-Dompreh, as well as Alhassan Sulemana Tampuli and Jerry Ahmed Shaib.
Meanwhile, the Speaker has also set up a committee to probe the incident.
The suspension follows an incident that the Speaker described as an embarrassment to Parliament. He has directed the Parliamentary Marshal to prevent the suspended MPs from entering the chamber during this period.
The decision was made in response to the disorder that disrupted the vetting of ministerial nominees. Tables and microphones were broken in the process, and some MPs nearly engaged in physical altercations.
Speaker Bagbin made it clear that such behaviour would not be tolerated and warned of further action should similar incidents arise in the future.
During his statement, he expressed his disappointment over the conduct of the MPs involved.
He emphasised that their behaviour was unbecoming of Members of Parliament and had brought shame to the legislative body.
He further explained that the suspension was necessary to restore order and discipline in parliamentary proceedings, which had been severely undermined by the MPs’ actions.
Speaker Bagbin also hinted at possible additional consequences if such disruptions persist.
He assured the public that Parliament would take a firm stand against any actions that could harm its reputation and disrupt its work.
This comes after the Appointments Committee apologised for the incident before the start of today’s vetting.
